Mahabharat (1988 TV series)

Mahabharat is an Indian television series based on the ancient sanskrit epic of the same name. The original airing consisted of a total of ninety-four episodes[1] and were broadcast from 2 October 1988 to 24 June 1990 on Doordarshan.[2][3] It was produced by B. R. Chopra and directed by his son, Ravi Chopra.[4] The music was composed by Raj Kamal. The script was written by Pandit Narendra Sharma and the Urdu poet Rahi Masoom Raza, based on the original story by Vyasa. Costumes for the series were provided by Maganlal Dresswala.[5]

For the 2008 9X TV series produced by Balaji Telefilms, see Kahaani Hamaaray Mahaabhaarat Ki. For the 2013 Star Plus series produced by Swastik Pictures, see Mahabharat (2013 TV series).

Mahabharat
GenreMythology
Created byB. R. Chopra
Based onMahabharata by Vyasa
Written byPandit Narendra Sharma
Dr. Rahi Masoom Raza
Screenplay byRahi Masoom Raza
Directed byB. R. Chopra
Ravi Chopra
Creative director(s)Yashwant Mahilwar
StarringNitish Bharadwaj
Mukesh Khanna
Gajendra Chauhan
Praveen Kumar
Arjun
Roopa Ganguly
Puneet Issar
Pankaj Dheer
Gufi Paintal
Narrated byHarish Bhimani
Composer(s)Raj Kamal
Country of originIndia
Original language(s)Hindi
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes94
Production
Executive producer(s)D.H. Vengurlekar
Producer(s)B. R. Chopra
CinematographyDharam Chopra
Editor(s)Shailendra Doke
Birpal Singh
Running time60 minutes
Production company(s)B R Films
Release
Original networkDD National
Picture format576i
Original release2 October 1988 (1988-10-02) –
24 June 1990 (1990-06-24)
Chronology
Followed byMahabharat Katha

Each episode is approximately 60 minutes and begins with a title song that consisted of lyrical content and two verses from the Bhagavad Gita.[6] The title song was sung and the verses rendered by singer Mahendra Kapoor. The title song is followed by a narration by Indian voice-artist Harish Bhimani as a personification of Time, detailing the current circumstances and highlighting the spiritual significance of the content of the episode. It is the most successful Mahabharata series ever produced for television.[7]

Mahabharat Katha Part II, the story of Barbarik and Veer Babhruvahan, was a spin-off series that contained portions left out of Mahabharat.

Premise

The series covers the incidents of epic Mahabharata revolving around Lord Krishna, Pandavas, Kauravas, Karna, Draupadi etc.

The show begins with Emperor Bharata giving more importance to ‘Capacity’ over ‘Birth’. The latter shows the birth of Bheeshma and his oath, birth of Pandu, Dhitarashtra and Vidur and birth of Pandavas and Kauravas. The story then focuses on the childhood of Lord Krishna and the death of ( Kans )//


Elsewhere, Dronacharya teaches Pandavas and Kauravas and asks to defeat Drupad as Guru Dakshina. Pandavas do so and give half of his kingdom to Drona. For revenge, Drupad obtains Dhrishthadhyumna and Draupadi. Dhritarashtra makes Yudhishthir the crown prince of Hastinapur. Shakuni (the maternal uncle of the Kauravas) and Duryodhan hatch a plan to burn Pandavas and Kunti alive, but they survive and go into incognito. Duryodhan is made crown prince of Hastinapur.

Arjuna wins Draupadi in her swayamvara but latter shows her marriage with all five Pandavas. Later, Yudhishthir is made the king of Indraprastha and Pandavas conduct Rajsuya Yagna where Draupadi insults Duryodhana. Latter shows Duryodhana's revenge by trying to disrobe her and sending Pandavas along with Draupadi for an exile of 12 years and 1 year of anonymity. Duryodhana argues that the Pandavas violated the condition of anonymity in their last year of exile, therefore they must spend another 12 years in exile followed by another year of exile in anonymity. This conflict begins to sows the seed for the Mahabharata War.

After 13 years, Arjun and Subhadra's son Abhimanyu marries Uttara. Krishna tries to make peace between both parties. Indra in the disguise of a brahmin took Karna's armor and earrings. Krishna reveals Karna's true identity of being the eldest Pandava.

Before Mahabharata War, Shri Krishna enlightens Arjuna about Geeta and showed his Virata Swaroopa to Arjuna. The latter shows the deaths of Bheeshma, Drona, Karna, Abhimanyu, Shalya, Shakuni, Jayadrata, Ghatotkach, 100 Kauravas, 5 sons of Draupadi and many other warriors in the war leading to the victory of Pandavas over Kauravas. Gandhari holds Krishna responsible for her son's death and curses that his family will also get destroyed. The show ends with Yudhishthir's Rajyabhishek and Bhishma's death.

Cast

Main

Recurring

Episodes

Episode 1 - Introduction of Kuru Family, Raja Bharat, and Raja Shantanu

Episode 2 - Ganga Kills Her Sons

Episode 3 - Bhishma is Grown-up

Episode 4 - Bhishma Pratigya/Iccha Mrityu Vardaan

Episode 5 - Amba, Ambika and Ambalika's Introduction

Episode 6 - Birth of Pandu, Dhritarashtra, and Vidur

Episode 7 - Karna's Birth-story, Dhritarashtra and Gandhari Get married, and Pandu and Kunti Get married

Episode 8 - Madri is gifted to Pandu, Pandu is resting and Sage Kindama's curse on Pandu

Episode 9 - Dhritarashtra is king, Pandu's sanyas and Kansa is king and Akashwani about Krishna

Episode 10 - Birth of Balarama and Five Pandavas

Episode 11 - Krishna Janma (birth of Krishna)

Episode 12 - Pootna's Death

Episode 13 - Krishna brahmand darshan and Krishna gets caught while stealing Makhan

Episode 14 - Maiya Mori Mai nahi makhan khayo and Kaliya Nag Tandav

Episode 15 - Radha and Gopikas, protest against Mathura, Devakasur and Trulambasur Vadh

Episode 16 - Kansa invites Krishna to Mathura

Episode 17 - Kansa Vadh

Episode 18 - Pandu's Death

Episode 19 - Satyavati, Ambika, Ambalika take sanyas with Rishi Vyas

Episode 20 - Duryodhan Poisons Bhim and Bhim Gets Strength of 1000 Elephants

Episode 21 - Sudama's chivda and Drona arrives at Hastinapur

Episode 22 - Shastra Pooja, Drona insults Karna and Arjun's Test

Episode 23 - Ekalavya, Karna's Education, Arjun's Test of Bird's Eye

Episode 24 - All the Princes have grown up, and they exhibit their skills in Rangbhoomi, Karna challenges Arjun and Duryodhan gives Anga desh to Karna

Episode 25 - Drona's guru Dakshina to capture Dhrupad

Episode 26 - Krishna gets Sudarshan chakra from Parshuram, defeats Jarasandh and orders building Dwarika

Episode 27 - Yudhishthir Is crowned as Prince. Rukmini Is Being Forced to Marry Shishupal

Episode 28 - Krishna Rescues Rukmini

Episode 29 - Lakshagraha is built-in Varnavata by Purochan

Episode 30 - Tunneling in Varnavat Begins

Episode 31 - Escape from Lakshagraha

Episode 32 - Hidimba Vadh and Bhima's marriage

Episode 33 - Bakasur Vadh

Episode 34 - Dristadyumna & Draupadi Birth and Draupadi Swayamvar

Episode 35 - Arjun wins Draupadi and later she became the wife of the 5 Pandavas

Episode 36 - Pandavas Leave from Panchal to Hastinapur

Episode 37 - Pandavas Arrives at Hastinapur and Kingdom Is Divided

Episode 38 - Pandav Get Khandavprastha

Episode 39 - Coronation of Yudhirsthir, Khandavprastha Becomes Indraprastha

Episode 40 - Arjun runs away with Subhadra

Episode 41 - Arjun weds Subhadra. Arjun gets Devdatta Conch and Gandiva and Bhima gets his Gada

Episode 42 - Jarasandh Vadh, Rajsuya Yagnya begins, Shishupal's Story

Episode 43 - Rajsuya Yagya, Shishupal Vadh

Episode 44 - Vyas predicts War, Draupadi laughs at Duryodhan

Episode 45 - Pandavas go to Hastinapur to gamble

Episode 46 - Yudhishthir loses Everything in the Gamble

Episode 47 - Vastraharan of Draupadi

Episode 48 - Pandavas Get Back Everything

Episode 49 - Re-match of Dyut

Episode 50 - Vanvas Begins

Episode 51 - Gandharvas catch Duryodhan

Episode 52 - Arjun worships Lord Indra and Lord Shiva for Divyastra and gets Pashupatastra

Episode 53 - Krishna's story of one grain of rice, Bhim meets Ghatotkach and Hanuman, Arjun learns dance from Chitrasen

Episode 54 - Arjun gets curse of impotency from Urvashi, Abhimanyu as a kid, Jayadrath's head is shaved

Episode 55 - Story of Poisoned Water and Yaksha, Abhimanyu is Grown-up

Episode 56 - Agyatvas in Matsya Desh

Episode 57 - Karna's curse, Draupadi as Maid Sairandhri rejects Keechak

Episode 58 - Keechak Vadh by Bheema

Episode 59 - Kaurav Attack Matsya Desh

Episode 60 - Viraat war and clothes for Uttara's dolls

Episode 61 - Abhimanyu's marriage and Pandavs decide to send a Doot to Hastinapur

Episode 62 - Dhritarashtra does not agree and sends Sanjay

Episode 63 - Duryodhan gets Narayani Sena from Krishna

Episode 64 - Krishna Goes to Hastinapur as Shanti Doot

Episode 65 - Krishna took Virat Avtar and Indra takes Karna's kawach kundala

Episode 66 - Karna's identity is disclosed

Episode 67 - Vidur resigns as prime minister, Kunti meets Karna

Episode 68 - Sanjay gets Divya Drishti, Ulluk goes to Pandavas

Episode 69 - Duryodhan tricks Shalya to join Kauravas

Episode 70 - Shikhandi's Story

Episode 71 - Arjun Worships Goddess Durga, rules of war laid

Episode 72 - Kurukshetra War begins and Arjun Drops His weapons, Geeta Saar begins

Episode 73 - Geeta Saar continues

Episode 74 - Geeta Saar continues and Krishna shows his Maha-avtaar

Episode 75 - Yudhishthir gets blessings, Yuyutsu changes side and war begins, Abhimanyu faces Bhishma

Episode 76 - Uttar dies, Arjun faces Bhishma and day 2 begins

Episode 77 - Arjun is unstoppable, 3rd day is over, 4th day begins, Bhim is surrounded, 10 Kauravs are killed, Krishna takes out his Sudarshan

Episode 78 - 9th Day is over and 16 Kauravs are dead, Bhishma tells Arjun how to take him out of the war

Episode 79 - Bhishma lies on the bed of Arrows, Karna meets Bhishma

Episode 80 - Day 11, Drona tries to capture Yudhishthir but is unsuccessful, Shantanu comes to Bhishma

Episode 81 - Chakra Vyuh Planned, Duryodhan Promises Susharma

Episode 82 - Abhimanyu Vadh

Episode 83 - Arjun Vows to Kill Jayadrath and Story About Jayadrath's Curse

Episode 84 - Arjun Breaks Kamal Vyuh to Get to Jayadrath

Episode 85 - Shri Krishna covers the Sun, Jayadrath Vadh

Episode 86 - Ghatotkach dies

Episode 87 - Virat and Drupad are killed, Drona Dies

Episode 88 - Dushasana dies and Karna fights with Arjun, Krishna puts the Rath in the land so that Arjun is saved

Episode 89 - Karna's curse, Karna Dies

Episode 90 - Shakuni Dies, Shalya dies, Duryodhan learns about Karna's truth, Yudhishthir Curses All WomanKind, Gandhari curses Krishna & Yaduvansh, Duryodhan Becomes Iron Bodied

Episode 91 - Balaram arrives, Bhim-Duryodhan Gada Yudh, Duryodhan fatally wounded, Balaram decides to kill Bhim

Episode 92 - Duryodhan Dies, Ashwathama, Kripa and Kritvarma Remain, Ashwathama kill the sons of Pandavas (Uppandavas) and Drishtadyumna, Ashwathama tries to kill Uttara's unborn son, Krishna curses Ashwathama, Parikshit Born

Episode 93 - Dhritarashtra-Vidur discussion about dharma, Pandavas arrive at Hastinapur, Dhritarashtra Tries to Kill Bhim

Episode 94 - Dhritarashtra and Gandhari ready for Vanaprastha. Yudhisthir Becomes King of Hastinapur, Bhishma Dies

Production

Development

According to production team member Kishore Malhotra, the total cost of producing the series was ₹9 crore (US$1.3 million).[8] Casting for the series began in 1986 and shooting started off in mid 1988.[9]

Casting

Nitish Bharadwaj was chosen by B R Chopra, Ravi Chopra, (screenplay writer) Pandit Narendra Sharma and (dialogue writer) Rahi Masoom Raza, to play the central role of Krishna, at the age of 23.[10][11] Initially, he was chosen for playing Vidur. But Virendra Razdan was cast for it as BR Chopra considered Bharadwaj young to play the role.[12] Then Bharadwaj was offered to play Nakul and Sahadev, but he rejected and wanted to play Abhimanyu. Days later, he was called and finalized to play Krishna.[12] Firoz Khan was chosen to portray the character of Arjuna (which he later adopted as his screen name, to not become confused with a more popular actor of the same name) despite being rejected in auditions.[13] Praveen Kumar was selected to portray Bhima after Chopra was looking for someone "who could look the robust historical character".[14] Around six actors were shortlisted for the role of Draupadi, including Juhi Chawla, who opted out of the show as she had bagged a film. Ramya Krishnan and Roopa Ganguly were the final names, and at last Roopa Ganguly was chosen, as her Hindi was good.[15] Govinda (actor) and Chunky Pandey were signed for the role of Abhimanyu, but they opted out when they bagged films. Later, Master Mayur played the role.[16] Raj Babbar and Debashree Roy were the only two star actors of that time, who agreed to be parts of this venture.[17] Mukesh Khanna who wished to play Arjun was initially offered the role of Duryodhan. But he was signed for Dhronacharya.[18] When Vijayendra Ghadge dropped his role of Bhisma, Khannagot the role of Bhishma.[19] Puneet Issar was told to play Bheem but was cast as Duryodhan on his wish.[9]

Broadcast

It was shown in the United Kingdom by the BBC,[20] where it achieved audience figures of 5.1 million.[21][22] It was also the first programme broadcast on BBC2 after its 1991 revamp,[23] but it had also been shown late at night on BBC 1 the previous year.[24] It has also been shown on FBC TV in Fiji and Star Utsav. It also aired on Epic in Hong Kong and TVB Jade. Dubbed versions were aired in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and also in Indonesia in the early 1990s on TPI (now MNCTV) and in the early 2000s on ANteve (now antv).

The show was again telecast on DD Bharati from 28 March 2020, on DD Retro from 13 April 2020, on Colors TV from 4 May 2020 during the lockdown due to coronavirus.[25][3][26]

Reception
  • Roopa Ganguly enacting in the Vastraharan sequence.
  • Ganguly was applauded for her performance in the sequence.[27] Ravi Chopra later disclosed that she was originally weeping while enacting in the sequence and the crew members had to console her later to make her stop.[27][28]
  • The sequence is often claimed to be the most climactic one of the series.[29] For the sequence Chopra recreated the visual effect of the Vastraharan sequence of Babubhai Mistry's Mahabharat (1965) starring Padmini as Draupadi.[30] His visual effects won more favour than that of the 1965 film and has still been considered by a part of critics to be the most brilliant in line.[31][32]
  • While Vyasa wrote about Dharma providing Draupadi with clothes, Chopra, in the sequence, delineated the popular myth of Krishna having provided with clothes, which received criticism that Chopra only meant for mass appeal.[33]


In common with the "Ramayana" serial, the broadcasting of a Mahabharat episode was associated with the simultaneous emptying of streets in the cities and people leaving work early to watch it.[34]

During the rerun during Covid-19 lockdown, it became the second most watched Indian TV show after Ramayan.[35] In week 13, it garned 145.8 million impressions with both morning and evening slots combined on DD Bharati.[36] However, after Ramayan ended, Mahabharat became the most watched TV show untill its end.[37] The series ended with 22.9 million viewership.[37]

Home media

The series was uploaded onto the website "Rajshri.com" along with its dubbed Tamil version.[38] Home video of the Bengali-dubbed version of this series has been released by Heart Video.[39]

Legacy

Mahabharat along with Ramayan (1987) became one of the most successful television series based on an epic in Indian television history. Many actors became popular through their appearances in this series. Mukesh Khanna shot to fame as Bhishma and named his production company after his character. Nitish Bharadwaj became famous as Lord Krishna and later he also played lead role in Chopra's another mythological show Vishnu Puran.[40] Roopa Ganguly who played Draupadi; went on to become a successful actress in Bengali cinema.[41][42] Actor Pankaj Dheer also got immense popularity after playing Karna. His pictures are used in textbooks as reference to Karna and the actor also revealed that his statues are worshipped in temples in Karnal and Batar.[43] Actor Firoz Khan changed his name to "Arjun" professionally after finding success with the role of Arjun.[44]

See also

References
  1. "B.R. Chopra (Indian filmmaker) – Britannica Online Encyclopedia". Britannica.com. Retrieved 10 August 2012.
  2. McLain, Karline (2009). India's immortal comic books: gods, kings, and other heroes. Indiana University Press. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-253-22052-3.
  3. "Iconic mythological series 'Mahabharat' to be re-telecast beginning Saturday at 12 and 7 PM". The Times of India.
  4. "Remembering BR Chopra: The Story Behind His Iconic 'Mahabharat'". The Quint.
  5. "Behind the scenes: Dress designers to actors & deities". The Tribune. 20 April 2003. Retrieved 2 June 2013.
  6. Title Song Lyrics from the TV Series Mahabharat, 21 September 2013, archived from the original on 18 March 2017, retrieved 1 December 2014
  7. "31 years of Mahabharat on Doordarshan: Interesting facts about one of most popular TV shows ever". The Financial Express.
  8. Mahabharat Ki Mahabharat: The Making of B.R. Chopra's "Mahabharat"
  9. "Mahabharat actor Puneet Issar: BR Chopra wanted me to play Bheem, I chose Duryodhan". India Today.
  10. "'Nitish Bharadwaj refused to play Krishna in Mahabharat'".
  11. "Janmashtami 2017: Actor Nitish Bharadwaj recollects his days from the Mahabharat".
  12. "Mahabharat: Nitish Bharadwaj refused to play Krishna, dodged BR Chopra to avoid screen test". Hindustan Times.
  13. Tankha, Madhur (29 August 2012). "Mahabharat's Arjun gets blacklisted!". Retrieved 6 October 2018 – via www.thehindu.com.
  14. "'Bheem' waiting for a special role". 12 January 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2018 – via www.thehindu.com.
  15. "Juhi Chawla turned down Draupadi in Mahabharat. Then Roopa Ganguly got the role". India Today.
  16. "Actors talk about what went into making Mahabharat in 1988". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  17. "B.R. Chopra's serial 'Mahabharat' promises to be another bonanza 31101988". m.indiatoday.in. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
  18. "Puneet Issar on playing Duryodhan in Mahabharat: 'My body turned black and blue after climax fight scene with Bheem'". Hindustan Times.
  19. "Exclusive - Mukesh Khanna: The reruns of Ramayan and Mahabharat will help people like Sonakshi Sinha, who don't know anything about mythology". The Times of India.
  20. "BBC Genome:Mahabarat - transmission times". Retrieved 1 October 2015.
  21. ":: omnimb.ca Epic Hindi Language Series Mahabharat Launches Exclusively on Rogers OMNI Television Channels In Ontario and British Columbia::". 29 April 2008. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  22. Jones, Mark (7 June 2013). "The Returned: how British TV viewers came to lose their fear of subtitles". the Guardian. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  23. "Rochak kahani mahabharat ki". Gkhindinews. 10 February 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
  24. "Watch Rochak kahani mahabharat ki". Gkhindinews. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  25. "On public demand, Ramayan & Mahabharat makes comeback during lockdown". Outlook India. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
  26. Service, Tribune News. "Mahabharat to air on Colors". Tribuneindia News Service. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  27. "Mahabharat: चीर हरण सीन के बाद आधे घंटे तक रोई थीं 'द्रौपदी' रूपा गांगुली, पहनी थीं 250 मीटर लंबी साड़ी". www.timesnowhindi.com (in Hindi). 11 April 2020. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  28. "Mahabharat: चीर हरण सीन के बाद द्रौपदी का किरदार निभाने वालीं रूपा गांगुली आधे घंटे तक रोती रही थीं". www.livehindustan.com (in Hindi). 17 April 2020. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  29. "Actors talk about what went into making Mahabharat in 1988". www.hindustantimes.com. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  30. "Mahabharat (1965) - Review, Star Cast, News, Photos". Cinestaan. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  31. "Why the new Mahabharat is an epic fail- Entertainment News, Firstpost". Firstpost. 17 September 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  32. "Happy B'day BR Chopra: The Story Behind His Iconic 'Mahabharat'". The Quint. 22 April 2016. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
  33. Dissanayake, Wimal (1993). "The concepts of evil and social order in Indian melodrama: an evolving dialectic". In Dissanayake, Wimal (ed.). Melodrama and Asian Cinema. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-41465-4. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
  34. Mohan, Lavanya (16 October 2015). "Epic television". Retrieved 6 October 2018 – via www.thehindu.com.
  35. "DD emerges as most watched channel; Ramayana, Mahabharata among favourites". Live Mint.
  36. "Reruns of 1980-90s classics Ramayan, Shaktimaan, Byomkesh make DD most-watched channel". The Print.
  37. "Mahabharat becomes the most-watched show. Doordarshan witnesses major dip in ratings". India Today.
  38. "Mahabharat on the net". 22 December 2006. Retrieved 6 October 2018 – via www.thehindu.com.
  39. "Mahabharat now in Bengali". 20 February 2012. Retrieved 6 October 2018 – via www.thehindu.com.
  40. "The Sunday Tribune - Spectrum - Television". www.tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  41. Ghosh, Bishwanath (25 July 2015). "Ideology vs. stature". Retrieved 6 October 2018 – via www.thehindu.com.
  42. Tankha, Madhur (8 May 2015). "No child's play". Retrieved 6 October 2018 – via www.thehindu.com.
  43. MumbaiMay 27, India Today Web Desk; May 27, 2020UPDATED:; Ist, 2020 17:31. "Did you know Mahabharat's Karna, Pankaj Dheer's statue is worshipped in temples in Karnal and Bastar?". India Today. Retrieved 21 June 2020.CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  44. "Mahabharat's Arjun Firoz Khan Says Changing His Name Gave Him Everything He'd Dreamed of". News18. 27 April 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
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